Spreading the news - Radio Today (Aust & NZ)
Despite the merging of newsrooms, the outsourcing of news services and the sacking of journalists, listeners have still got it good when it comes to ‘news’. Compared to other countries, regular news updates is a bit of an oddity, especially on a FM radio station, where social media is both a source of news and a source of competition. A former Program Director of K-Rock Geelong and Music Director of Nova 100 Melbourne, Ronnie made the move in 2008 to launch Virgin Radio Vancouver. On a day-to-day basis, he programs Vancouver FM’s Rock 101 and ‘The World Famous C-Fox’, a rock variety station, a bit like Triple M. . The variety of stations under the Corus Entertainment umbrella places him in a unique position to compare the... While Australian radio has a "tradition" of providing news across the day on both am and fm, it's not such a high priority in Canada. "We don't have as much news on our stations as you do in Oz. We run news hourly in the morning show only and we limit to 3 stories per news” says Ronnie. He’s quick to point out that the news of the day isn’t being ignored, but reflected in a different way, much like the successful breakfast shows here in Australia. “The hard hitting news doesn’t fit the formats we run, and we know the audience knows where to go to get that stuff anyway”. Source: www.radiotoday.com.au
